ARKANSAS, USA — After Arkansas’ 2024 candidate filing concluded Tuesday, Nov. 14, Arkansas U.S. Congress incumbents Reps. Rick Crawford, French Hill, Steve Womack, and Bruce Westerman seek reelection and now face Democratic opponents.
Womack, who represents Arkansas’ 3rd Congressional District, is the only incumbent who faces a primary challenger. State Sen. Clint Penzo, R-Springdale, filed Monday to throw his hat into the race and run against Womack. Womack also faces Democrat opponent Caitlin Draper.
Pine Bluff attorney Risie Howard was the final Democrat to file on Tuesday to announce her candidacy in the 4th Congressional District. She will run against Republican incumbent Westerman.
Howard and Westerman will also face John White. White ran for the 4th Congressional District seat as a Democrat in 2022. For the upcoming election, White filed as an Independent.
Veteran Rodney Govens filed as a Democrat to run for the 1st Congressional District against incumbent Crawford.
Democrat Marcus Jones will challenge Hill for the 2nd Congressional District Representative seat.
Meet the candidates:
District 1
Rodney Govens (D)
Govens is a U.S. Army veteran from Cabot. Govens served in the Army as a communications specialist during Operation Iraqi Freedom from 2003 to 2004. He was honorably discharged in 2005. Govens currently works as a Court Appointed Special Advocate.
Rick Crawford (R)
Crawford has served as a representative for Congressional District 1 since 2011. He serves as a senior member of the House Agriculture Committee. Crawford previously worked as an agriculture news reporter and later founded and operated the AgWatch Network, which was a farm news content provider in Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Kentucky. Right out of high school, Crawford served as an explosive ordinance disposal technician in the U.S. Army for four years. He obtained a degree in Agriculture Business and Economics from Arkansas State University.
District 2
Marcus A. Jones (D)
Jones of Little Rock served as a U.S. Army colonel for 29 years both domestically and abroad. Jones’ final assignment was serving as the senior army advisor to the Arkansas Army National Guard. He is a University of Arkansas alumnus and obtained his master’s from Webster University in management and leadership.
French Hill (R)
Hill of Little Rick has served as the 2nd Congressional District’s representative since 2015. He currently serves as the vice chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. Hill is a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Prior to assuming his role as a congressman, Hill was the founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Delta Trust & Banking Corporation. He was appointed to be an executive secretary to former President Bush’s Economic Policy Council (EPC) in 1991. He graduated from Vanderbilt University with a degree in economics.
District 3
Clint Penzo (R)
Penzo was elected as a state senator in 2022 and currently represents District 31 of Arkansas, which encompasses Springdale, Johnson, Tontitown, and Elm Springs in Washington County. Prior to serving as a senator, Penzo served in the Arkansas House of Representatives from 2017-2022. He also served on the Tontitown City Council for two years. Penzo is a University of Arkansas alumnus and currently works as a realtor for Re/Max.
Caitlin Draper (D)
Draper of Fayetteville is a social worker with a focus on treating anxiety disorders, eating disorders, depression, autism spectrum disorder, and maternal mental health. She works as an adjunct lecturer in the School of Social Work at the University of Arkansas. Draper obtained her master’s in Social Work from the University of Arkansas. She is originally from Dallas but has been living in Fayetteville since attending the university.
Steve Womack (R)
Womack has served as the 3rd District’s representative since 2011. He serves as a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee and a chairman of its Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee. He also works on the Defense and Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittees. Prior to his election in 2011, Womack served as the mayor of Rogers for 12 years. In 2009, Womack retired from the Arkansas Army National Guard where he served as a colonel. He is an alumnus of Arkansas Tech University.
District 3 candidates, Womack and Penzo will face off in the Arkansas Primary on March 5.
District 4
Risie Howard (D)
Howard of Pine Bluff is an attorney at the George Howard Jr. Legal Center, LLC. Her late father, George Howard, served as a U.S. district judge from 1980 to 2007. Howard previously ran for the 11th West Judicial Circuit, Division 4, in 2022. She is an alumna of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law.
John White (I)
White of Stephens is a disabled veteran and former deputy assistant secretary for rural outreach at the U.S. Department of Education. White challenged Westerman last election cycle in 2022 for the Congressional District 4 seat.
Bruce Westerman (R)
Westerman of Hot Springs has represented Arkansas’ Congressional District 4 since 2015. He serves on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and is the chairman of the Natural Resources Committee. Westerman previously served as Arkansas’ first Republican House Majority Leader in the Arkansas General Assembly between 2013 and 2014. Prior to his political career, Westerman worked as an engineer at Mid-South Engineering in Hot Springs for 22 years. He graduated from the University of Arkansas with a degree in Biological and Agricultural Engineering.
General Elections will be on Nov. 5.
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